Extension Communications Extension 4-H Youth Building Ames, Iowa 50011-3630 (515) 294-9915

7/8/04

Contacts:
Aaron Steil, Reiman Gardens, (515) 294-2710, liets581@iastate.edu
Jean McGuire, Continuing Education and Communication Services, (515) 294-7033, jmcguire@iastate.edu

For the week of July 5, 2004

Lantana Brings Beauty and Butterflies to the Garden

By Aaron Steil,
Extension Intern
Reiman Gardens
Iowa State University

Looking for a great flowering plant that is versatile in baskets, containers and your garden? This week's Reiman's Pick, lantana, is beautiful, versatile and at least excites many to describe its unusual perfume. Lantana produces several clusters of flowers from May until frost. It blooms in a wide array of colors and performs well in hot weather. Lantana also adds an additional dimension to the garden as a food source for butterflies, hummingbirds and other birds.

Annuals are often described as a plant that completes its life cycle in one year. However, there are several plant species, such as lantana, that are sold and grown as annuals though they are actually perennials. Lantana is a perennial as far north as USDA Hardiness Zone 8. When grown in the southern states and in its native tropical and subtropical climates, it can become a large, invasive shrub.

Although there are more than 150 species of lantana, only a few are grown in Iowa gardens. The most commonly found species in cultivation is Lantana camara. The size of this lantana varies greatly, growing from one to four feet tall and about two feet wide. Some larger cultivars make excellent landscape plants and can be trained into "standard" forms characterized by mounds of growth on the tops of long stems, resembling the look of a lollipop. Additionally, some cultivars of this species are considered "trailing" thus perfect to grow in hanging baskets.

All lantana cultivars have rough, hairy leaves placed opposite to each other on woody stems. The leaves are one to two inches in length. When crushed, some choose to call the fragrance "lemony", while others choose to say it reeks.

Beyond the diverse olfactory similes, a very desirable characteristic of lantana is the flower. Several small florets form two- to four-inch diameter, short-stemmed clusters that originate in the axils of the stems and leaves. The florets change color as they age resulting in amazing bi-colored flower clusters. The light-colored buds in the center are circled by dark, mature florets around the edge. Lantana blooms in a wide palate of colors, including yellow, gold, white, orange, red, rose, pink and lavender. Lantana is a must in a "butterfly garden" because the small, tubular florets are a great nectar source for butterflies and hummingbirds.

Beyond the beauty of the flowers, which eventually fade, clusters of small, berry-like fruit will develop that change from green to black at maturity and are a favorite food for birds.

Lantana plants perform best in full sun and well-drained soil. Set transplants out after the threat of frost has past. The plant thrives in warm temperatures and grows rapidly in hot weather but is finished with the first frost. The plants can be dug and over-wintered near a sunny window; however they often get leggy and fail to flower in low light conditions.

Lantana can be easily propagated by taking two- to four-inch cuttings from the ends of the stems; removing the lower two leaves on the cutting, and rooting them in moist perlite.

Whether grown in a container, in a hanging basket, or a butterfly garden, lantana is a wonderful "annual" for Iowa gardens. You can see many beautiful lantana cultivars throughout Reiman Gardens in containers, garden borders and inside the glass butterfly house feeding butterflies in the Christina Reiman Butterfly Wing.

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Lantana cultivars that do well in Iowa:
'Athens Rose' - vigorous, 3 to 4 foot tall; red, rose and yellow flowers
'New Gold' - abundant bright, golden yellow flowers on spreading plants
'Samantha' - yellow flowers with lemon and lime variegated foliage
'Confetti' - yellow, orange and pink flowers with an upright, compact habit
'Patriot Rainbow' - similar to 'Confetti' with a spreading growth habit
'Irene' - bright yellow, red and pink flowers
'Spreading Sunset' - similar to 'Irene' with a more spreading habit
'Lemon Drop' - creamy yellow flowers, small leaves with a trailing habit.

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Editors: A color photo, suitable for publication, is available at right. Click on the thumbnail photo to go to the fullsized photo. The picture's fullsize photo is 248K. Caption: Lantana adds beauty and brings butterflies and birds to your garden. It is a "tender perennial" in Iowa and is grown as an annual. The multiple clusters of flowers make it an attractive container and landscape plant for sunny locations.

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